Salaula means second hand clothes and it's a pretty big business in Zambia. The clothes are shipped from the UK, US and other countries as donations. Then they are sold cheaply in markets throughout Zambia and I pretty sure other countries in the area too. There's been some controversy over the practice as many believe the glut of cheap clothing is stifling local manufacturing.
When I lived in Zambia out in Eastern province a few years back, I occasionally bought something from the local salaula but not often as there wasn't much selection. Then a few months back a friend took me to the huge salaula market here in Lusaka. I'd not thought of going before because I assumed it would be like a giant jumble sale. As it turned, it's well organised and quite low key. One writer friend pointed out that it's a little like a department store, children's clothes are in one section, skirts in another, household linens in another...
And the people who work there are helpful; on Saturday I was looking through skirts when one of the teenage boys hanging around pointed and said 'The blue one'. It wasn't really my colour but it was nice of him to help. I have bought a couple of things for my husband too, the man I go to asks for the size and colour and from his huge selection of shirts and trousers he finds ones that might be suitable.
After a few trips I am starting to select my favourite vendors, those with nice tops or with an eye for good quality. But salaula is also funny in that sometimes you will go and find very little, other times like today, you come away with a ton of goodies. On my last trip I walked off with two dresses and five tops including a Ralph Lauren jumper and spent about $20.
